About 100 Lac-Mégantic residents to remain homeless for one year

Christopher Curtis, The Gazette08.09.2013

Two emergency crew workers speak as they stand in front of a pile of train wheel-set axels inside the red-zone at the site of the explosion in Lac-Mégantic. Around 100 residents were told it will likely take about a year for them be able to live in their homes again.

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MONTREAL — There was more bad news Tuesday for the 100 or so residents who remain displaced by the fatal train derailment in Lac-Mégantic.

At a community meeting Tuesday night, they were told it will likely take about a year before they are able to live in their homes again. About 2,000 of the city's residents evacuated their homes in the immediate aftermath of the explosion that destroyed the downtown and killed 47 people in Lac-Mégantic on July 6.

Most were able to return home in the days following the tragedy, after air-quality tests determined their neighbourhoods were safe to live in.

But for the people closest to the blast — those who either lost a house or who lived in an area contaminated with crude oil — nights have been spent in motel rooms, couch surfing and making other temporary arrangements. For families who expected to hear they could go back home, Tuesday's community meeting came as a terrible shock.

"I wouldn't have wanted to be in their shoes, let's just put it that way," said Nicolas Carette, a spokesperson for the city of Lac-Mégantic. "A lot of them thought they'd be getting good news but, sadly, that's not what happened. Some people found out for the first time that their house could be destroyed because of contamination. It's like a second grieving process for a lot these people."

While many of the buildings near the blast site in Lac-Mégantic are still structurally intact, some will need to be levelled because crude oil has seeped under their foundations. About 5.7 million litres of crude came gushing from the runaway freight train into downtown the night of the derailment. But the cleanup effort was delayed by rescue operations and, later, the search for bodies amid the wreckage.

"We don't know exactly how many homes will need to be destroyed, but obviously, for the people going through this, it's not easy to live with that uncertainty," Carette said.

As people continue to look for a more permanent living situation, they'll meet with representatives from Quebec's Régie du logement and Sécurité civile to determine if they're eligible for financial aid. The city of Lac-Mégantic says it will dip into the $95 million it received in government relief money to pay for moving and storage costs incurred by the displaced residents.

Jacques Audet has already found an apartment in a hamlet near Lac-Mégantic and he says he'll probably never go back to his old place. Audet slept on a cot in the local high school's gymnasium for a week after the explosion. He was moved into a trailer behind the school before finding himself a new home.

"I don't know if I want to be reminded of what happened that day," he told The Gazette. "I lost friends in the fire, it was terrible. Now I kind of just have to find a way to get back to living a normal life even though that seems impossible."

In July, Sécurité civile awarded each household evacuated during the blast a $1,000 cheque — they handed out 1,795 in all. Just over 60 business owners affected by the derailment received $5,000 cheques as well.

For families displaced longer than just a few days, each member received a $20-a-day housing stipend and vouchers to buy meals at local restaurants. The $20 dollar stipend is still in effect and Sécurité civile is establishing a fund to pay for damages not covered by people's insurers.

"We understand that it's been an extremely difficulty situation for these citizens," said Lac-Mégantic mayor Colette Roy-Laroche. "But everything is being put in place to inform and help these people."

A "frequently asked questions" webpage will be launched Thursday and there are still mental health resources available to any residents who may need open up about their situation. Meanwhile, the Red Cross and various branches of the provincial government will remain in place in Lac-Mégantic as long as they're needed, according to Roy-Laroche.

"If they need services for six months, it will be six months, if they need them for two years it will be two years," Carette said. "All we can do right now is let people know we're here to help."<

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